Skillfully placing an order for Youquan Shaofan on a certain yellow delivery app, Ling Xiaoyou sprawled out in a star shape on her soft bed, ready to wait for her food to arrive.
Come to think of it, ever since she went to work in the evening, she hadn’t eaten a single bite.
Her last meal was already yesterday at noon.
Although Ghosts didn’t need food as much as they did when they were alive, there was still some demand.
Plus, habits from her human days and the need for energy replenishment meant that even after becoming a Ghost, in the Underworld, almost every Ghost ate three meals a day.
So for Ling Xiaoyou to go so long without eating, it could already be called starving!
“Sigh, it’s all those Demons’ fault, making me waste a portion of Youquan Shaofan on them.”
Ling Xiaoyou rubbed her stomach, which was starting to growl, and sighed.
“But to be fair, Youquan Shaofan is unexpectedly useful.”
Ling Xiaoyou pinched her smooth little chin.
“It can fill your stomach, tastes pretty good, and can also be used as a one-time Youquan bomb. As long as it touches someone who isn’t a Ghost or an Exorcist with countermeasures, it’s almost impossible to escape the fate of Yin and Death energy entering the body.”
“And as long as the enemy is invaded by Yin and Death energy, I can use Ghostfire to replicate the same move I used to burn Demons before!”
The more Ling Xiaoyou spoke, the brighter her eyes became.
She felt as if she had discovered a brand new world!
Mm, it’s decided.
From now on, whenever I leave the Underworld, I’ll prepare some Youquan Shaofan in my Space Ring.
Since time inside the Space Ring is frozen, it stays the same no matter how long it’s stored.
It can be used as food and as a hidden weapon—what a handy thing!
Time passed as Ling Xiaoyou let her thoughts run wild.
By the time she was fantasizing about defeating the King of Demons with Youquan Shaofan and becoming the Ruler of Hell, the doorbell rang at the entrance, and her phone vibrated.
Without even picking up, Ling Xiaoyou knew her delivery had arrived.
“Wuhu, the food’s finally here!”
Shaking the chaotic thoughts from her mind, Ling Xiaoyou jumped off the bed, her white-socked feet landing on the floor as she happily went to the door and opened it.
Immediately, she saw a Little Black Cat holding a delivery bag in its mouth, its tail burning with ghostly blue Ghostfire.
It’s worth mentioning that the Little Black Cat’s tail was wrapped around a palm-sized phone, which it held to its ear.
It was probably calling Ling Xiaoyou to notify her that the delivery had arrived.
Seeing the door open and Ling Xiaoyou appear, the Little Black Cat meowed twice and moved the phone away from its ear.
“Okay, okay, I’ll give you a good review!”
Ling Xiaoyou crouched down, gently scratching under the Little Black Cat’s chin with her small hand, showing the skill of someone very familiar with cats.
Under her expert touch, the Little Black Cat purred contentedly.
Feeling so comfortable, the cat’s mouth relaxed, almost dropping Ling Xiaoyou’s delivery, but she caught it just in time.
Though, since the Little Black Cat wasn’t very tall, even if the food fell, it wouldn’t have been a big deal.
“Meow meow meow.”
Seeming to realize it had lingered too long, the Little Black Cat meowed at Ling Xiaoyou in cat language, as if saying ‘I’ll be going now’.
It looked back at Ling Xiaoyou a few times, reluctant to part with the pleasant massage.
But it still had deliveries to make and couldn’t stay here too long, so it left with lingering attachment.
“Come by my place next time if you’re free. There are tasty cat treats~”
Waving at the Little Black Cat’s back, Ling Xiaoyou watched as it meowed as if to say ‘I’ll definitely come when I have time’, then prepared to return inside.
Suddenly, her steps halted as she heard a door opening nearby.
Ling Xiaoyou turned towards the sound and saw Lin Ruhua coming out of her home, looking troubled.
Seeing this, Ling Xiaoyou decided not to rush back inside but instead greeted Lin Ruhua and asked what was wrong.
“Good morning, Sister Lin.”
Ling Xiaoyou waved at Lin Ruhua.
The latter seemed troubled and hadn’t noticed Ling Xiaoyou until she greeted her.
“Oh, Xiaoyou, eating takeout so early?”
Lin Ruhua tried to compose herself and saw the delivery in Ling Xiaoyou’s hand.
“Well, it’s not that early for me. I worked overtime for a long time. I haven’t eaten since yesterday afternoon. This is just making up for it.”
Ling Xiaoyou explained.
“I see.”
Lin Ruhua nodded, understanding.
“By the way, Sister Lin,”
Ling Xiaoyou looked at Lin Ruhua curiously.
“Are you not feeling well? You looked really troubled just now.”
“So you noticed, Xiaoyou.”
Lin Ruhua nodded, sighed softly, and said,
“Then I won’t hide it from you. I’ve been worried about something lately.”
“Do you remember what I mentioned last time? About many Ghosts disappearing after going to the Human Realm?”
“This matter…”
Ling Xiaoyou pinched her smooth chin and thought for a moment, recalling the memory.
“Oh! I remember!”
She clapped her hands, enlightened.
It had only been a few days, but so much had happened that she’d almost forgotten.
“So, another Ghost went missing?”
“Yes.”
Lin Ruhua nodded and sighed.
“This time, it was a friend of mine. She went to the Human Realm to see her family, and ended up gone for several days, still not back.”
Hearing this, Ling Xiaoyou thought for a bit and said,
“Could it be she just got delayed by something and couldn’t come back in time?”
“Probably not.”
Lin Ruhua shook her head.
“She told me she’d be back in two days at most, but it’s been a week already.”
“I messaged her, but she hasn’t replied—like she vanished into thin air.”
“Really? That’s strange. Why would a Ghost go missing?”
Ling Xiaoyou folded her arms, tilting her head as she tried to figure out what could cause a Ghost to disappear.
Suddenly, she remembered the person she thought of the last time Lin Ruhua mentioned missing Ghosts.
Could it be Bai Shuanglian’s doing?